Murray State University Athletics
Lady Racers looking good early, rank among tops in OVC statistics
12/10/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
The Murray State Lady Racers rank among the top four Ohio Valley Conference teams in 14 of the 19 categories issued by the league office this week, and head coach Joi Williams sees progress on the court for MSU.
"We're showing some good signs," Williams said. "The Arkansas State game was a bright spot for us because of how hard we worked. We played the whole game without quitting or having too much of a lag period. (ASU) went on a run, but we kept up with them. That showed us how good we could be and how good we can become.
"The season is still very young, and there are going to be ups and downs. I want this team to experience success, and to do that, we have to get consistent and get better every game."
Murray State (3-3) leads the OVC in three-point shooting at 38.7 percent, led by senior guard Megan Fuqua, who is tied for seventh in the nation at 57.1 percent (12-for-21) behind the arc.
"Megan has shown us a lot," Williams said, "especially looking at last year and how little she played. I've been pleased with how she can come off the bench and the spark that she gives us."
MSU ranks second in the OVC in scoring defense, allowing only 61.3 points per game, a category that the Lady Racers traditionally do well in. Murray State is also second in field-goal defense, with opponents shooting 38.7 percent from the field.
"On field-goal defense, we want to hold opponents to less than 40 percent," Williams said. "That's difficult to do, and so far, we've done a good job."
Murray State also ranks second in rebound margin, out-rebounding its opponents by 3.3 boards per game.
"We've really worked hard on our rebounding," Williams said. "As a staff, we're always hounding our players about going to war on the boards. I hope we can keep this up into the conference season."
The Lady Racers lead the OVC with 28.5 defensive rebounds per game.
MSU is second in scoring margin (+7.8) and field-goal percentage (44.5 percent), ranks third in assists (15.7 per game) and is tied for third in scoring offense (69.2 points per game).
The Lady Racers are fourth in the OVC in rebounding offense (40.2 boards per game), rebounding defense (opponents average 36.8 rebounds per contest), assist-to-turnover ratio (0.82) and three-pointers made (6.0 per game).
Individually, Fuqua is second in the OVC in three-point percentage, tied for fifth in treys per game (2.00), seventh in field-goal percentage (54.1 percent) and 23rd in scoring (9.7 ppg). Senior guard Jenny Bowden is second in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.30), fourth in assists (3.83 per game) and tied for 12th in three-point percentage (40 percent).
Senior guard Stacy Holmes ranks tied for third in blocked shots (1.33 per game, is fifth in field-goal percentage (56.0 percent), tied for fourth in steals (1.83 per game), tied for sixth in offensive rebounding (3.0 per game), tied for eighth in rebounding (7.3 per game), 10th in defensive rebounds (4.33 per game), and 18th in scoring (10.7 ppg).
Junior guard Rebecca Remington is sixth in three-point percentage (43.8 percent) and ninth in free-throw percentage (80 percent), while sophomore center Lori Trumblee is tied for third in blocked shots (1.33 per game), sixth in defensive rebounds (5.17 per game),10th in rebounding (7.2 per game) and 14th in field-goal percentage (48.8 percent).
Freshman forward Angela Mullins is tied for seventh in the OVC in blocked shots (1.0 per game), while junior guard Brittany Park is tied for 11th in assists (2.83 per game).
Murray State visits Troy State on Sunday at 2 p.m. LiveStats and live audio will be available, with links provided at the MSU athletics Web site, www.GoRacers.com, at the women's basketball schedule page.
